All posts tagged Immortals

The Relativity Media film, which drew mixed reviews, opened with better numbers than expected by many box office watchers, according to early figures from Hollywood.com. Final figures are due out on Monday. Read More »

‘Tis the season for Greek gods and mortal combats. Directed by Tarsem Singh, “Immortals” opens with a quote from Socrates and ends in a gory bloodbath-cum-prophecy that could spell sequel. Starring Henry Cavill, Mickey Rourke and John Hurt, the 110-minute fantasy tells the story of Theseus who is chosen by Zeus to amass an army and fight the evil King Hyperion.

It isn’t easy to slowly build a career when your first film was as explosively popular as “Slumdog Millionaire,” but Freida Pinto has pulled off that considerable task. After her breakthrough in Danny Boyle’s Oscar-winning film, she collaborated with auteurs Woody Allen (“You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger”) and Julian Schnabel (“Miral”), and helped relaunched a franchise with “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.” She will also be seen soon in “Trishna,” the latest film from British director Michael Winterbottom.

In her latest film, “Immortals,” Pinto plays the oracle priestess Phaedra for director Tarsem, elevating a love-interest role. Speakeasy sat down with Pinto in Los Angeles where she talked about reinventing a Greek icon, appreciating the value of a great body double, and deciding how to ensure that her career continues in films both great and small. Read More »

While other publishers continue their search for the next Stephenie Meyer, St. Martin’s Press is putting its money behind a certifiable home-grown success. Alyson Noël, author of the internationally bestselling Immortals series, has signed a new four-book contract with St. Martin’s Griffin imprint, brokered by Bill Contardi of Brandt & Hochman Literary Agents. A spokesperson for the author shared the details of the deal exclusively with Speakeasy, saying Noël will receive a “healthy seven-figures with additional performance bonuses that could double that.” The exact amount was not revealed but confirmed to be a “multi-million” dollar advance. St. Martin’s hopes to publish the new Soul Seeker series starting in 2012.

Noël has been with the publisher since her 2005 debut, but it was 2009’s Evermore, the first book of the young adult paranormal Immortals series, that catapulted her onto bestseller lists. Currently, the Immortals can be found at #5 on the New York Times Children’s Series list—just under media-fueled franchises Twilight,Percy Jackson,Pretty Little Liars and Diaryof a Wimpy Kid. The latest book, Dark Flame, debuted at #6 on WSJ’s best seller list and Radiance, the first in an Immortals spin-off series, releases in September. Noël’s only adult novel, Fly Me to the Moon, was recently optioned for development by Ridley Scott’s Scott Free Productions. Read More »

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Speakeasy is a blog covering media, entertainment, celebrity and the arts. The publication is produced by Barbara Chai and Jonathan Welsh with contributions from the Wall Street Journal staff and others. Write to us at speakeasy@wsj.com or follow us on Twitter at @WSJSpeakeasy or individually @barbarachai.